Hegseth Says Climate Change Is ‘Crap.’ The Military Is Still Bracing for It Climate is now a verboten topic in the Pentagon, but the battle against storms, fires, floods and rising seas hasn’t stopped.

Pete Hegseth said the Pentagon wouldn’t do any “climate change crap.” It’s still fortifying bases against rising seas and stronger storms.

Ukraine's Women: Warriors Not Victims Ukraine's women are key to sustaining the state, supporting the front, and holding society together under the pressure of Russian aggression.

Ukraine’s Women: Warriors Not Victims | “Women are not only filling gaps but redefining the structure of Ukraine’s workforce.” Kateryna Odarchenko
cepa.org/article/ukraines-women-w...

"Mosquitoes in Iceland are more than a curiosity or future annoyance. They are a warning …" - Amanda M. Koltz and Lauren E. Culler

Iceland—previously the only Arctic nation without mosquitoes—no longer holds that distinction.

"The detection of mosquitoes just north of Reykjavík in 2025 reflects an ecological shift already underway," write Amanda M. Koltz and Lauren E. Culler in a new #ScienceEditorial. https://scim.ag/4tg86pJ

A vital system of Atlantic Ocean currents is weakening and closer to collapse than thought, new studies find | CNN New research provides alarming evidence this ocean circulation is slowing and could be heading toward a shutdown, which would have catastrophic impacts on the planet’s weather and climate.

New study: most climate models underestimate the decline of the Atlantic overturning circulation #AMOC. The AMOC is on course to slow by more than 50% by the end of the century. 🌊
Very likely the AMOC will then be past the tipping point for full shutdown. 😨
us.cnn.com/2026/04/16/c...

Einsparmöglichkeiten eines Tempolimits auf Autobahnen und Außerortsstraßen in Deutschland Tempolimit-Szenario (Autobahn/außerorts) "Relative Änderung der THG-Emissionen des Straßenverkehrs (Friedrich et al. 2024)" "Mögliche Einsparung Diesel* (in Mio. Liter)" "Mögliche Einsparung Benzin** (in Mio. Liter)" " Mögliche Kraftstoff-einsparung (Benzin+Diesel) (in Mio. Liter)" "Mögliche Treibhausgas-einsparung*** (in Mio. t CO2-Äq.)" T130/100 2,2% 774 514 1.288 3,1 T130/80 2,7% 950 630 1.580 3,8 T120/100 3,9% 1.372 911 2.283 5,5 T120/80 4,7% 1.654 1.097 2.751 6,6 T100/80 8,1% 2.850 1.891 4.741 11,4

Die Preissteigerungen infolge des Irankriegs rücken das Thema #Tempolimit wieder in den Fokus. 🚗 Denn eine niedrigere Fahrgeschwindigkeit senkt den Spritverbrauch. ↘️

Wieviel Diesel & Benzin ließe sich eigentlich hierdurch sparen? Hier unsere Zahlen:

Critical Atlantic current significantly more likely to collapse than thought Scientists say finding is ‘very concerning’ as collapse would be catastrophic for Europe, Africa and the Americas

Not. Good. At. All.

New from me: No increase in global coal power generation after Hormuz closure - solar and wind growth covered the fall in gas-fired generation. The record buildout of clean energy in 2025 helped mitigate the impact of the Hormuz closure.

The Bromine Chokepoint: How Strife in the Middle East Could Halt Production of the World’s Memory Chips The U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, now in an unstable ceasefire, has exposed a structural failure in the global semiconductor memory supply chain, and it is

“Microsoft, Amazon, Google, and Meta are deploying hundreds of billions of dollars in AI infrastructure on delivery schedules that assume South Korean plants will have uninterrupted access to the etch chemicals they need.”

The damage wrought to the Middle East’s oil and gas supplies Saudi Arabia and Qatar have both suffered significant damage to production capacity during the US-Israeli war against Iran

Fossil fuel energy systems are highly concentrated and centralized. Everything flows from a relatively small number of massive nodes that then must move large distances via tanker, pipeline, & truck to reach their ultimate consumer, creating hard targets all long the way.
www.ft.com/content/f7e6...

As I’ve said before: methane is not the climate system’s long-term problem, but anyone sufficiently worried about short-term warming to be contemplating solar radiation management should be advocating far more heavily for methane reductions.

Exclusive | EU to cut funding for Chinese inverters in change of tack from Brussels Without fanfare, Brussels will stop funding for projects that use the Chinese-made devices as part of a ‘do more, say less’ strategy.

Exclusive: EU to stop funding EU projects with Chinese inverters, as grandstanding on Beijing gives way to quiet offensive

My report on a quiet decision taken by von der Leyen and her college that suggests the work of de-risking continues apace

OPEC+ crude production fell to an all-time low for the expanded producer group in March.

And for OG OPEC, it’s the lowest recorded crude production since Desert Storm in 1990.

Physical crude prices have set record, as @roryjohnston.bsky.social has noted. But, if after at least four weeks of knowing that an oil supply shock is fully baked in, the front-month price doesn't yet reflect it, something about the pricing system is broken, surely?
bsky.app/profile/rory...

The third Gulf war will scar energy markets for a long time yet Residual risks and ruined infrastructure will keep prices high

The third Gulf war will scar energy markets for a long time yet (Gift article):

“Mr Rauball expects oil to remain between $90 and $100 a barrel until the end of 2026, even if traffic through the strait normalises. And that dismal prospect rests on a ceasefire between furious enemies.“

The beginning of a long day

… The only way to avoid is to start taking environmental security seriously. It has to be treated it as a critical national, regional and international priority.”

An environmental disaster in Moldova has Russia’s fingerprints all over it | Paula Erizanu The Ukraine war on our doorstep is a constant threat. Contaminated drinking water is a dangerous new twist, says Moldovan journalist Paula Erizanu

“The Nistru oil spill has shown Moldova how exposed it is, and how fragile a society can become without access to clean drinking water. The war next door, combined with the climate crisis, give us little reason to think there won’t be another ecological disaster like this. …

New: the Iran war's price increases on just two products, gasoline and diesel, has already cost American households $130 each (on avg), a total of $17 billion -- and it's rising fast.

We have an Iran War Energy Cost Tracker @climatesollab.bsky.social. Check it out:

iranwarcost.watson.brown.edu

Ein Foto von einem Antarktischen Seebären. Zu lesen: "Rote Liste".

Ein Foto von einem Kaiserpinguin. Zu lesen: "Rote Liste".

Der Kaiserpinguin und der Antarktische Seebär werden auf der Roten Liste der IUCN nun als gefährdet geführt. Ausschlaggebend sind die Folgen des Klimawandels: Beim Kaiserpinguin vor allem der Verlust stabilen Meereises, beim Antarktischen Seebären der Rückgang seiner Nahrungsgrundlage. Diese Neubewertungen stehen exemplarisch für eine Entwicklung, die nicht abstrakt ist, sondern messbar und bereits heute sichtbar. Der Schutz der Antarktis ist daher auch eine Frage globaler Verantwortung für Klima und biologische Vielfalt.

Was hat das mit uns zu tun? Die Antarktis ist ein vom Menschen noch weitgehend unbeeinflusstes natürliches Ökosystem von großem wissenschaftlichem und ästhetischem Wert. Das so genannte ewige Eis am Südpol hat nicht nur gravierenden Einfluss auf das Weltklimageschehen, sondern dokumentiert wichtige Stufen der Erdgeschichte und repräsentiert bedeutende geologische und biologisch-evolutive Prozesse. Deutschland ist Vertragspartei des Antarktis-Vertrages und hat damit auch Verantwortung für die Antarktis übernommen. Das Umweltbundesamt trägt dazu bei, diese zu erfüllen. Mehr auf uba.de/antarktis

Ein deutliches Warnsignal aus der Antarktis: Der Kaiserpinguin & der Antarktische Seebär werden auf der Roten Liste der IUCN nun als gefährdet geführt. Ausschlaggebend: Folgen des Klimawandels. Beim Kaiserpinguin der Verlust stabilen Meereises, beim Seebären der Rückgang seiner Nahrungsgrundlage.

⚡ Power prices have split across Europe since the US-Iran conflict.

Prices have surged in gas-reliant markets with interconnectors at capacity.

Renewable-rich regions have seen the lowest prices - like sunny Spain and Portugal and hydro-powered Sweden.

New paper: @ptrckflmm.bsky.social (@prif.org), Christian Reuter (@peasec.de) and myself teamed up to analyze technological challenges alongside geopolitical implications of connecting Antarctica 🇦🇶 with other territories (🇳🇿, 🇨🇱) through subsea data cables.
Open access here: doi.org/10.1016/j.te...

This is 19th style imperialism with satellite reception is wrong and dangerous. The Antarctic is demilitarised, environmentally protected and open to researchers from all over the globe. Let‘s keep it that way.

The WSJ piece is paywalled but there is an earlier version online at an American anti-democratic and Trumpist think tank, just search for the title and author in the screenshot above.

From Alaska to Antarctica: The Next Great American Expansion Declan Ganley The Trump Administration should claim Marie Byrd Land.

I was waiting for this to happen: an Irish telco millionaire asks the US president the WSJ to make a claim to a part of Antarctica on 4th of July because: resources, grandeur, and satellite receiving stations. And of course China. No mention of Russia though.

In ihrem aktuellen FAZ-Gastbeitrag beklagt Katherina Reiche eine "Selbsttäuschunug" in der Energiepolitik. Tatsächlich fällt der Täuschungsvorwurf aber teilweise auf sie selbst zurück, denn der Text enthält diverse falsche oder irreführende Zahlen. Ein Thread. (1/17) www.faz.net/aktuell/wirt...

While fiber-optic connectivity promises major gains for climate monitoring and scientific collaboration, it also risks deepening strategic mistrust and may undermine the continent’s legal and political functional balance if left uncoordinated.”

We argue that these projects could shift the balance of Antarctic cooperation, depending on how transparently they are managed and how inclusively bandwidth and sensor data access are offered.

Although existing ATS rules allow for unilateral infrastructure development with limited oversight, there are challenges:

- ownership and regulatory control
- the dual-use nature of cables equipped with new sensor capabilities
- cable routes connected to military or intelligence-sharing allies.

“While such projects promise to transform scientific research through high-bandwidth, low-latency connectivity, they also raise profound geopolitical, legal, & security questions.

We analysed the planned projects drawing on scholarship on infrastructural politics and polar governance.